Two Lake County men suspected of raping a 15-year-old runaway, locking her in a 2-foot high metal box for days and forcing her to trim marijuana for weeks remained in the Humboldt County jail Thursday after a judge denied their release on drug charges.

Ryan Balletto, 30, of Lakeport and Patrick Steven Pearmain, 24, of Clearlake, appeared in the federal courthouse in Eureka on Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Nandor Vadas, who denied their release, saying he viewed both men as flight risks and dangers to the community. The two men were remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service.

Vadas said during Wednesday's detention hearing that he finds the case "extremely disturbing," echoing the sentiments of Assistant United States Attorney Matthew McCarthy.

"This is far and away the most disturbing case I've seen in my career as a prosecutor," McCarthy told the court.

McCarthy told the court that Balletto, a former U.S. Marine, met the 15-year-old runaway in Los Angeles and drove her nearly 500 miles to a 680-acre piece of land he owns in Ogulin Canyon near Clearlake, keeping her there for weeks against her will to help manicure marijuana buds harvested from a 1,300-plant grow.

McCarthy said both Balletto and Pearmain had sex with the girl while she was kept at the property, and that equipment "consistent with sexual bondage and sadomasochism" was found there. McCarthy said authorities searching the property also found a metal box -- measuring 4 feet long, 2 feet wide and 2 feet high -- with air holes drilled in it, and that the girl later told police the two men locked her inside the box on two occasions for a total of about three days.

McCarthy said the two men referred to their marijuana operation as "their mission," and told the girl they were locking her in the box to "teach her" and protect their "mission."

According to a federal criminal complaint filed against the two men, the box -- located outside the trailer in which Balletto resided on the property -- had a hose attached to it, allowing the men to wash human waste off the girl and out of the box without opening it. The girl told authorities, according to the complaint, that Balletto called her a "trooper" for not screaming while she was locked in the box.

The girl also told authorities, according to the complaint, that both Balletto and Pearmain repeatedly had sex with her, including while she was immobilized on a "rack." The girl also told police that sex with Pearmain was consensual but that sexual acts performed with Balletto were "not as consensual," according to the complaint, which notes the girl -- due to her age -- is not "legally able to give consent to have sexual activity with an adult."

In arguing against Balletto's release from custody, McCarthy also told the court that officers searching the grow site property and Balletto's home found a small arsenal of high-powered weaponry.

"This combination of weapons and defensive equipment -- the only reason to have this is for a prolonged gunfight," McCarthy told the court, noting the defendant's military training and surmising that it's possible the only reason Balletto was arrested without a shootout is that a SWAT team took him by surprise while he was asleep.

McCarthy noted that officers found 17 additional firearms at Balletto's other residence in Lakeport -- where Balletto's girlfriend and five children reside -- including additional assault rifles and a pair of high-powered sniper rifles.

Arguing for his release from custody, Balletto's attorney, Christina Allbright, told the court that he registered some of the 22 firearms included in this case, which "shows he is compliant." Additionally, Allbright said Balletto owns significant property that could be used as collateral for bail if he were released from custody.

In denying bail, Vadas pointed to Balletto's alleged conduct with the runaway teen, his arsenal of weapons and his ownership of an airplane, which he allegedly failed to mention to authorities during a detention assessment.

According to federal court documents, Balletto purchased a Cessna airplane in Florida in 2011, paying $185,000 in cash. The transaction caught the attention of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security as Balletto failed to register the plane after purchasing it and, ultimately, paid a fine of almost $20,000 to avoid forfeiting the aircraft.

Vadas said Balletto's failure to mention the plane is further evidence that he may pose a flight risk if released from custody in this case.

According to the complaint, the Department of Homeland Security and United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement began investigating Balletto for narcotics trafficking beginning in December 2011, and Lake County authorities were already planning to serve a search warrant on the property when they learned in May that the runaway teen may have been being held there against her will.

As Lake County authorities began investigating the status of the runaway teenager, the Lake County Sheriff's Office dispatch center received a call on April 30 from someone who identified herself as the girl, saying she was "OK." Authorities traced the call, according to the complaint, and ultimately found the girl in a Sacramento hotel with Pearmain. Police also reported finding condoms, a home pregnancy test and a written script for the phone call to police in the hotel room. Pearmain was arrested at the scene, and the girl was taken into protective custody.

Arguing for his release from custody, Pearmain's attorney, David Crane, noted that the girl told authorities that Pearmain was her "boyfriend," and said he wasn't aware of any evidence indicating his client hadn't taken the girl to the Sacramento hotel room to "rescue" her from bondage at the marijuana grow.

Pearmain and Balletto are scheduled to appear in federal court in San Francisco on July 31 to be appointed new attorneys in the case. Both have pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy to distribute 1,000 or more marijuana plants, using a minor in drug operations and possessing a firearm in the commission of a drug trafficking crime.

Lake County prosecutors filed a host of charges against Pearmain and Balletto but dismissed the case to make way for federal prosecutions, which could see both men face life in prison if convicted on all counts.